30th November 2022 |
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Good morning. Merriam-Webster picked "gaslighting" as the 2022 word of the year. Searches for the word, which is used to describe psychological manipulation that leads to self-doubt, soared by 1,740% in 2022.
Do you know that the term originated in the 1938 play "Gas Light," in which the lead male character convinces his wife that she is going insane? The husband dims the gas light and tricks his wife into believing that it is not going darker in their home. Now, you know!
United States. President Biden is pressuring Congressional leaders to pass a bill to prevent a nationwide railway strike. Several rail unions voted to reject a Biden-backed deal, saying that it fell short of their demands. A nationwide rail strike would disrupt the transportation of key materials including lumber, coal, and chemicals, as well as other consumer goods.
Britain. England and Wales are no longer majority Christian, and are slightly less White than a decade ago, newly released 2021 census data show. The two British nations have fallen from 59% self-described Christian in 2011 to 46% in 2021. The number of respondents saying they had no religion was the biggest gainer, rising from 25% a decade ago to 37% now. There was also a rise in the number of Muslims, from 5% in 2011 to 6.5% in 2021.
World Cup. The much-anticipated showdown between the US and Iran saw the politics and controversy surrounding the match set aside as the two teams battled it out in a splendid display of football. The US emerged victorious with a 1-0 score that sends them into the Round of 16 stage while the Iranians were eliminated after finishing third in Group B with three points. In the other game, Old rival England thrashed neighbouring Wales with a 3-0 defeat that sent the Welsh team out of their first World Cup tournament finals since 1958.
1835 Mark Twain is born
Mark Twain, whose real name was Samuel Clemens, was the celebrated author of several novels, including two major classics of American literature: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He was also a riverboat pilot, journalist, lecturer, entrepreneur and inventor.
NIGERIA
Paternity Leave Becomes Reality
The Story
Men in the Nigerian Civil Service will have access to paternity leave when they welcome new babies.
How long will the leave be?
Fourteen working days. This was disclosed by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Folasade Yemi-Esan, through a circular on Monday. “Government has also approved paternity leave for serving male officers whose spouse delivers a baby. The period of the leave shall be fourteen working days”, she said. The leave also extends to those who adopt a child, particularly a four month old or younger. “Where the family of a male officer adopts a child under four months old, the officer will similarly enjoy Paternity Leave for a period of fourteen working days”, she added.
When will the policy commence?
Immediately, as it takes effect from Friday, November 25, 2022. While noting that the paternity leave was in line with the provisions of the Public Service Rules (2021 Edition), she stated that a formal request for the leave must be submitted, together with the Expected Date of Delivery’s (EDD) report of the officer’s wife or evidence of approval of the adoption of the child by the relevant government agencies. SOURCE
AFRICA
Breaking Namibia's Glass Ceiling
The Story
Namibia is set to have its first female president.
Who is she?
Deputy Prime Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is a step away from becoming Namibia's first female president, after the country's ruling party - South West African People’s Organization (SWAPO)- elected her as its vice president, making her the frontrunner to lead the party into Namibia’s 2024 national elections.
How did she get here?
The 70-year-old beat her rivals , Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila and Environment Minister Pohamba Shifeta, in the race for SWAPO's No. 2 position. Her emergence was further enhanced by the incumbent president's refusal to name a preferred successor. "We have made history by electing the first female president come 2024,” president Geingob said on Monday, adding that “I would like to tell her your task going ahead is heavy".
The largest political party in Namibia is SWAPO, and it has been in power since 1990, at the country's independence. However, due to widespread unemployment and a corruption scandal that resulted in the arrest of Swapo-affiliated businessmen and former cabinet ministers, the party's support has recently declined. In the most recent general election in 2019, the party lost its two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, and president Geingob's vote share decreased from 87% (in the previous election) to slightly over 50%. SOURCE
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ASIA
Japan's Worrying Low Birth Rate
The Story
Japan had a record low birth rate last year, and was concerned. Rather than see an improvement, there has been a further decline in the number of babies born this year, leading to even more serious concern for the authorities.
What's the concern?
By 2060, Japan's population, which currently numbers over 125 million, is expected to decrease to 86.7 million. As the nation strengthens its military to stave against China's increasingly assertive territorial ambitions, a declining and aging population has significant ramifications for the economy and for national security. Last week, a government-commissioned panel delivered a report to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida noting the declining population and low birth rate as potential threats to Japan's national strength.
Why aren't they having kids?
Japan recorded 599,636 births between January and September of 2022, which was 4.9% fewer than last year's record. Younger Japanese have shown a lack of interest in getting married or starting families, a consequence of gloomy career prospects, long commutes, and corporate cultures that don't support having both parents work. Since 1973, when it reached a peak of around 2.1 million, the number of births has been declining. In 2040, it is anticipated to decrease to 740,000. Hirokazu Matsuno, the chief cabinet secretary, announced the government's intention to initiate all-encompassing measures to promote more unions and births. SOURCE
HISTORY
Most Shameful Incident in Science History?
Quora Question: What is the most shameful incident in science history?
Sean Kernan: You can thank this man for the creation of the Anti-Vaxxer movement:
Dr. Andrew Wakefield
He wrote a paper about how MMR (Measles Mumps Rubella) vaccines are linked to autism. The article was “live” for an entire decade before it was retracted.
Investigators later learned he’d done his research on a hand-selected group of 12 children, later stating that eight had lost skills, including “language,” due to their shots.
Even further, it was found out that he’d been funded by law groups involved in lawsuits against vaccine manufacturers.
The article went viral on TV stations and newspapers. Parents, already hyper-protective, picked up on it, and suddenly vaccination rates went down, leading to measles outbreaks in Britain. Following an investigation, he was found by Britain’s General Medical Council to have practiced unethical research.
This was just as social media was gaining steam, and it was easy to spread crazy misinformation. I can even remember talking to a mother around 2011 who gave me a lecture about how vaccines cause autism and other problems.
Wakefield had several run-ins over his extreme views (and fraud), but his paper was the most damaging. The current problems we have with anti-vaccination can all be traced to Wakefield’s bogus, unethical conduct. It’s a crying shame that his paper was accepted into the journal and that media stations ran with it.
Wakefield can’t practice medicine in the United States and the UK barred him from practicing, stripping his license.
10,000 resident doctors remaining in Nigeria – NARD
Adeleke sacks 12,000 workers, dethrones three monarchs
Osun Assembly rejects Adeleke’s decision to rename state
Suspended Ekiti lawmaker readmitted after apology
Gunmen kill Labour Party women leader in Kaduna
Black marketers sell petrol at N350 a litre as scarcity worsens in Lagos
Innoson exports made-in-Nigeria vehicles to Sierra Leone
Malawi begins world’s first large-scale malaria vaccination
WHO to rename monkeypox as ‘mpox’ amid racism concerns
World Cup recap, Day 10: US defeats Iran, England wallop Wales
‘We lived there once’: An underwater mosque resurfaces in India
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Why Nigeria Keeps Attracting Lenders. Medium
COUNTRY PROFILE
Serbia
Official Name: Republic of Serbia
Region: South East Europe
Government: Unitary Parliamentary Republic
Country Calling Code: +381
Capital City: Belgrade
Independence Day: 5 June 2006
Population: 6,797,105 (2022 estimate)
Currency: Serbian dinar (RSD)
Official Language: Serbian
Emir: Aleksandar Vučić
GDP Per Capita: $22,900 (2022 estimate)
TRIVIA
This is a compilation of quiz questions like you've ever answered! It contains fun facts and a little bit of November. We hope you enjoy smashing this quiz as much as we did while creating it.
Q: What is the name of the day after Thanksgiving?
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